Republican: Tailbacks Paying Dividends

After watching his football team squeeze out a hairy 26-21 victory at Stony Brook Saturday, University of Massachusetts coach Kevin Morris was asked about the luxury of using two top-shelf running backs in his offense.

"With us, it's not a luxury. It's a necessity,'' Morris said.

In a surprisingly difficult victory, No. 11-ranked UMass leaned heavily on Northeastern transfer John Griffin, who rushed 23 times for 132 yards and scored the deciding touchdown in the fourth quarter.